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Wink Martindale will rely heavily on his New York Giants linebackers in 2022.
The New York Giants are entering a new era on defense with incoming coordinator Wink Martindale. The objective is to creatively find ways to get to the quarterback via pressure packages and blitzes.
All three levels of the defense will participate but it will the linebackers that the lead the way this year behind two new unit coaches — John Egorugwu (outside) and Drew Wilkins (inside).
Here’s a quick roundup of the linebackers heading into camp.
New York Giants OL Korey Cunningham and LB Quincy Roche exchanged punches during Thursday’s OTA practice.
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There is never a shortage of drama with the New York Giants, no matter the time of year or what is happening in the world, they find a way to make things interesting.
It could be a sudden slew of injuries, an offseason setback of an injured player, coaching upheaval, and any number of other events keep Giants fans and media on their toes. The events that occurred during Thursday’s OTAs are no exception.
Linebacker Quicny Roche and offensive lineman Korey Cunningham apparently got into it on the field. And some big blows were exchanged.
FIGHT! Looked like OL Korey Cunningham and LB Quincy Roche were in the middle of it. Punches were thrown. Maybe watching too many Rangers games.
— Dan Duggan (@DDuggan21) May 26, 2022
Fist fight on 2nd team 11 on 11 after play between edge Quincy Roche & RT Korey Cunningham just now. Haymakers, Roche’s helmet comes off. Daboll sends them both to sideline. #Giants
— Pat Leonard (@PLeonardNYDN) May 26, 2022
It’s unknown at this time what the cause of the interaction was or what disciplinary action will be taken. But Talkin’ Giants tweeted an incredibly appropriate photo after the fact.
Choose your fighter pic.twitter.com/528bLUkjRX
— Talkin’ Giants (@TalkinGiants) May 26, 2022
Roche is entering his second year in the NFL, stands at 6-foot-3 and weighs 245 pounds. In his first season with the Giants, he had 38 tackles, including 15 solo and 2.5 sacks, plus a forced fumble. Still, he’s likely no match for the fifth-year, 6-foot-6, 311-pound lineman out of Cincinnati.
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Quincy Roche, who was claimed off of waivers last year, has been named the New York Giants’ best-kept secret headed into the 2022 season.
The New York Giants have been lacking in the pass rush department since Jason Pierre-Paul was traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2018. However, they have showed some signs of finally breaking out of their slump.
Leonard Williams has recorded 18.0 sacks over the past two seasons, while 2021 second-round pick Azeez Ojulari set the franchise rookie record for sacks (8.0) a year ago. Then, of course, there was the addition of Kayvon Thibodeaux in the 2022 NFL draft just last month.
Even with the departure of Lorenzo Carter, who came on strong to end last season, there seems to be some promise. And even some hidden gems.
Bleacher Report’s Maurice Moton recently broke down the best-kept secrets on every NFL roster and when it came to the Giants, he tabbed a pass rusher. But it wasn’t Williams, Ojulari or Thibodeaux who drew the nod. Rather, it was Quincy Roche.
Clearly, the New York Giants hit on their 2021 second-round pick in Azeez Ojulari, who led the team in sacks (eight) and pressures (27) last year. But we shouldn’t overlook Quincy Roche, whom the team claimed off waivers before the start of the previous season.
Outside linebacker Lorenzo Carter missed three games between Weeks 8 and 11, and Roche took advantage of an expanded workload on the edge. The latter started in the absence of the former and logged 13 tackles, two for loss, three quarterback hits and a sack in that short stretch.
Despite Carter’s return, Roche still occasionally made impact plays at or behind the line of scrimmage and finished the campaign with 38 tackles, five for loss, 2.5 sacks and seven pressures while on the field for 42 percent of the defensive snaps.
Carter signed with the Atlanta Falcons, but the Giants selected Kayvon Thibodeaux with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2022 draft. Roche won’t see a significant increase in his snap count behind Ojulari and the rookie, though he can add another layer to Big Blue’s pass rush in a rotational role.
Roche, who was a sixth-round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2021, did flash at times with the Giants. There were several instances where it appears they had found a needle in the haystack, but Roche was limited based on the rotation.
Although his role isn’t likely to increase in 2022, Roche does present a quality rotational option with some upside.
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New York Giants DT Austin Johnson and LB Azeez Ojulari earned the team’s highest PFF grades in a Week 13 loss to the Miami Dolphins.
The New York Giants hit a low point on Sunday during a 20-9 loss to the Miami Dolphins, and that’s saying something. But their offense managed just three field goals, failing to score a touchdown for the first time this season.
Their end-of-half struggles also continued, while an over-worked defense faded at times.
Understandably, their Pro Football Focus grades for Week 13 are not great. And on the offensive side of the ball, the team saw some of their lowest collective grades of 2021.
Leading the way on offense was left tackle Andrew Thomas, who earned an overall grade of 72.1. He was followed by running back Devontae Booker (70.9) and tight end Evan Engram (70.0).
Other notable offensive grades include wide receiver Kenny Golladay (66.0), guard Ben Bredeson (60.3) and running back Saquon Barkley (45.3).
The lowest-graded Giants on offense were quarterback Mike Glennon (40.9) and guard Matt Skura (40.8).
New York saw much better grades on defense, led by defensive tackle Austin Johnson (83.3). He was followed by rookie edge rusher Azeez Ojulari (82.5) and linebacker Benardrick McKinney (79.3).
Other notable defensive grades include linebacker Quincy Roche (75.8), safety Logan Ryan (65.6) and rookie cornerback Aaron Robinson (60.4).
The lowest-graded Giants on defense were cornerback James Bradberry (45.4) and defensive end Raymond Johnson (33.7).
Cornerback Jarren Williams led the special teams unit with a grade of 74.7.
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Here are the winners, losers and those in between from the New York Giants’ Week 13 loss to the Miami Dolphins.
The New York Giants entered Week 13 shorthanded and hopeful, but left Miami just shorthanded.
In one of their ugliest performances in recent years, the Giants were manhandled by the Miami Dolphins despite the scoreboard showing a low-scoring affair. The reason for that? Big Blue’s usually anemic offense was completely non-functional on Sunday.
With limited weapons, a replacement quarterback and injuries abound, the Giants’ offense was so bad Jason Garrett could be heard laughing from his home in Dallas. And defensively? They, too, left a bit to be desired.
With the loss, the Giants fall to 4-8 on the season and see their slim playoff hopes slip further away.
Here’s a look at the winners and losers (and those in between) from Sunday’s 20-9 loss.
Rookie Quincy Roche says he’s “thrilled” to be part of a New York Giants defense that is improving under Patrick Graham.
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Quincy Roche has had a roller coaster start to his NFL career. He was drafted in the sixth round by the Pittsburgh Steelers and was later waived on August 31. Luckily for Roche, he was picked up by the New YorkGiants a day later and the rest is history.
Roche has now worked his way up the depth chart and has even started his last two games.
In Week 9, Roche recorded the game-winning strip-sack on Derek Carr — it was his first career sack. That was a special moment for Roche, but originally he did not know the gravity of the play he made.
“No, I just heard the crowd start screaming and that’s how I knew,” Roche told reporters with a laugh this week. “My head was turned the other way and I saw the crowd screaming. I heard the crowd screaming and I just got super excited.”
Originally the rookie did not know that New York had recovered the ball thus ending the match. This was a cumulation of hard work that Roche and his teammates have been putting in to improve this defense.
“I think it’s just everybody jelling together, everybody working hard in practice and it shows in the game. So, I’m really thrilled with this defense, the way that we’ve been playing, but of course there’s room for improvement, so we’ll be back in the lab after this bye week and we’ve got a tough opponent next,” Roche said.
The Giants have improved vastly on the defensive side of the ball but still have a lot of work to do. They play one of the league’s best offenses (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) in two weeks and this should be a great way to show how Roche and this team has developed this season.
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In the latest Brian Baldinger Breakdown, Baldy focuses on New York Giants rookie edge rusher Quincy Roche and concludes that he’s a closer.
Following a Monday night game between the New York Giants and Kansas City Chiefs, retired offensive lineman and current NFL analyst, Brian Baldinger, singled out edge rusher Quincy Roche.
In his first career start, Roche factored in. The box score showed just three tackles (one for a loss) and one QB hit, but there was more production than met the eye.
Baldinger focused on several plays that did not show up in the box score and determined that Roche had impact player potential.
.@Giants #QuincyRoche made his first #NFL start for #BigBlue on MNF and he showed a lot of traits that he showed @Temple_FB @CanesFootball . Makes me wanna see more. I think he knows how to play #BaldysBreakdowns pic.twitter.com/73Uj6bM8yv
— Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) November 6, 2021
Less than a week after Baldinger made that statement, Roche again showed up for the Giants. This time, by making a game-winning strip sack of Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr.
Baldinger chose to focus his entire Giants-Raiders breakdown on that one play.
.@Giants #QuincyRoche closes this game out! Sacks are fun and important; but sack/fumbles to put a game on ice is a totally different feeling. This Roche’ has a chance! Been trained real well and is a worker. Looks hood in #Giants Blue. @CanesFootball @Temple_FB #BaldysBreakdowns pic.twitter.com/XLSiAlwNkY
— Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) November 8, 2021
“There are sacks, there are sack-fumbles and then there are plays that take over a game,” Baldinger said. “Quincy Roche, in his 50th snap as a starting defensive end for the Giants, closes it out.
“The Giants used to have guys that could close the game out — going back to L.T. and Osi and Stray. . . That [Roche play] is called closing the game. Close the game out! Preserve the win. Quincy Roche, the newest star in New York.”
Roche has a long way to go before joining the Taylor’s, Umenyiora’s and Strahan’s of the world, but over his first two starts, there’s no denying the impressive level of potential he carries.
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New York Giants FS Xavier McKinney and DL Dexter Lawrence earned the team’s highest PFF grades in Week 9. The lowest grade will shock you.
The New York Giants defense came up big in Week 9, holding the Las Vegas Raiders to just 16 points while scoring seven of their own. And in the end, it was the defense that sealed the team’s third victory of the season.
The star of the show was safety Xavier McKinney, who recorded seven tackles, two interceptions and one touchdown. Unsurprisingly, he was the Giants’ highest-graded player on Sunday.
In fact, McKinney’s PFF grade of 94.5 was the highest grade of any defender in the NFL on Sunday.
Just behind McKinney on defense were lineman Dexter Lawrence (88.8), linebacker Quincy Roche (75.0) and lineman Leonard Williams (73.3).
Other notable defensive grades include safety Julian Love (70.8), cornerback Adoree’ Jackson (63.0) and nose tackle Danny Shelton (39.7).
The lowest-graded Giants on defense were cornerback James Bradberry (37.2) and linebacker Tae Crowder (31.9).
Offensively, tight end Kyle Rudolph led the way for the Giants, earning an overall PFF grade of 81.0. Just behind him were running back Devontae Booker (68.4), wide receiver Kenny Golladay (68.0) and left tackle Matt Peart (66.6).
Other notable offensive grades include quarterback Daniel Jones (65.2), tight end Evan Engram (65.0) and wide receiver Darius Slayton (52.9).
The lowest-graded Giants on offensive were guards Matt Skura (51.0) and Will Hernandez (46.8).
Hernandez grading out so low is puzzling.
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The New York Giants were in need of some big, game-changing plays and Xavier McKinney and Quincy Roche each answered the bell in Week 9.
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It’s been a strange road for both New York Giants safety Xavier McKinney and edge rusher Quincy Roche.
For McKinney, his rookie season was derailed due to injury and then he nearly missed Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders due to an all-too-common false-positive COVID-19 test. He was forced to isolate from the team and only just made it back under the wire.
The Giants are thankful he did.
McKinney closed out Week 9 with seven tackles, two passes defensed, two interceptions and one touchdown. The pick-6 gave the Giants a lead they would not relinquish but only because of his second interception — one that saved cornerback James Bradberry from being the fall guy.
“We were in a Cover Three, they ran a double move, I was beat on the double move and Zay saved my life, so shoutout to Zay,” Bradberry told reporters after the game.
Bradberry was never in danger, however. McKinney recognized the play and the route from earlier in the game and saw it coming from a mile away. The veteran corner may have been beaten, but that played right into McKinney’s hands. Literally.
“I actually told Brad earlier in the game they did the same thing, I broke on it. They actually threw a back shoulder and I told him after that, I told him, I said, ‘If they do that again, I’m going to beat it and I’m going to pick it.’ They did the same thing, tried to run the double move, pumped them and then threw it the same way he pumped, and I made a play,” McKinney said.
“I don’t think I saved him, but he was there anyway. Either one of us would have made the play. I told him I had his back, and he knew that. I made sure that I accomplished that, and I did have his back on that play.”
It wasn’t a game-sealing interception, but it certainly put the Giants in position to win. And when push came to shove, Roche stepped up and made sure McKinney’s career day wouldn’t go to waste.
Selected in the sixth-round of the 2021 NFL draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers, Roche had his rookie season hopes dashed when he was waived as a part of final cuts in September. The Giants quickly claimed him off of waivers, but it was an uphill battle from there.
On Sunday, Roche was plugged in as the bona fide starter over Oshane Ximines, who was a healthy scratch. He responded with the biggest play of his life.
With the Raiders facing a second-and-10 from the Giants’ 13-yard line and only 44 seconds remaining in the game, Roche burst around the edge, leaving Las Vegas tackle Kolton Miller in the dust. He unloaded on quarterback Derek Carr, forcing a fumble that was recovered by Leonard Williams.
Game over.
“I’d been looking at (Miller’s) set all game. I was going power for the most part, but that drive wanted to give a change up, wanted to switch it up against a good player and I beat him around the edge. He’s a great player. It was a great play,” Roche said after the game.
“It goes back to what we do in practice. Just practice and finishing all the time at the top of your rushes. That’s been drilled hundreds of times, so when you’re in the game your body is taking over.”
Roche didn’t see Williams recover the fumble, but he knew the Giants had won the game based on the reaction from the fans.
“My head was turned the other way and I saw the crowd screaming. I heard the crowd screaming and I just got super excited,” Roche added.
It’s been a while since the Giants heard fans cheering for them in their own stadium and now they’ve experienced it twice in three weeks. It’s a feeling they could all get used to and one being fueled by young, budding defensive stars.
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Analyzing the New York Giants’ 23-16 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders at MetLife Stadium in Week 9.
The New York Giants hosted the AFC West-leading Las Vegas Raiders at MetLife Stadium on Sunday afternoon, which was a perfect day for football with temperatures around 50 degrees and hardly any wind.
The Giants were coming off another disappointing loss while Las Vegas was coming off their bye week. It was hardly an uneventful week for the Raiders with the tragic Henry Ruggs situation, and the Giants were uncertain about who would be available this week after some faulty COVID-19 tests.
The line at kickoff had dipped down to Giants +2.5 with an over/under of 46.5 points as per the Tipico Sportsbook app.
The Giants opened the scoring with a crisp seven-play, 75-yard drive that resulted in a Daniel Jones-to-Evan Engram 30-yard hookup for a touchdown that Engram grabbed over Raiders safety Jonathan Abram.
WHAT. A. CATCH.
📺: @NFLonCBS & Giants App pic.twitter.com/6trJBDNEaw
— New York Giants (@Giants) November 7, 2021
The Raiders stormed right back, marching 72 yards on 10 plays and tied the game when Derek Carr hit Hunter Renfrow for a two-yard score after Renfrow shook James Bradberry on the goal line.
The defenses took over the game and the clubs traded field goals to bring the score to 10-10 with 2:00 remaining in the first half. The Giants have been terrible at the end of the first half all season and they continued that in this game as Las Vegas was able to add another field goal with 0:10 remaining in the half to take a 13-10 lead into the tunnel.
The Raiders lead was short-lived as Giants safety Xavier McKinney picked off Carr on the first possession the second half and took it 41 yards to the house to give the Giants a 17-13 lead.
On the next possession, the Giants defense once again stood tall and forced a field goal. It was their third red zone stop of the game in four tries.
Graham Gano’s 32-yard field goal widened the Giants’ lead with 14:07 remaining. The defense did their thing again on the Raiders’ next drive, stopping them on third-and-6 from the Giants’ 10. Daniel Carlson then hooked the 25-yard field goal attempt wide left to keep the score at 20-16 in favor of New York.
McKinney’s second interception shut the door on Las Vegas’ next possession and sent the Giants on a drive that resulted in a 36-yard field goal to extend the Giants’ lead to 23-16.
The Raiders took control of the football on their own 25 with 3:21 remaining. After driving down to the Giants’ 13 with 0:50 remaining, the defense went work again. Rookie defensive end Quincy Roche stripped Carr of the ball and it was recovered by Leonard Williams on the 23.
The Giants finally win close one. They are 3-3 after starting the year 0-3.
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